Matcha the right way ~ Matcha Factory & other things

This is the Grape Tree’s Matcha, it’s been sifted so it’ll mix better :3

So thanks to my favourite sushi restaurant’s particular choice of green tea, I’ve been on a green tea bender. I asked them where they got their kind from and they told me, Costco. So of course I went on a googling spree. I found out that it was a green tea-matcha blend. Which is probably why it was the greenest green tea I’ve had in a while. It’s the Kirkland brand, which I couldn’t order direct from Costco, so I ordered from Amazon. The day it arrived I decided to wander round town to see if there was any pure matcha on it’s own. Found 2 places near where I worked, one was a weird blend, and one was pure matcha. £6.99 for 30g from Grape Tree in Sutton Coldfield, probably some of the cheapest I’ve seen online or offline. I can  only think of one website that has it cheaper. And of course, I’ve done my research now.

Grape Tree’s Matcha, 30g packet for £6.99. Most matcha seems to be sold in 25-50g packs.

In indoor light

In somewhat natural light

The colour of Grape Tree’s matcha is pretty good as far as I can tell, nice bright vibrant green, as opposed to some of the darker, more yellower toned matcha’s I’ve seen reviewed, this post was particularly enlightening. Seeing the comparison between brands and qualities. I’m no connoisseur by any means. But if I’m gonna try something. I’m going to do it right. Which is why I then went on a hunt for the proper matcha whisk, or chasen, figured I’d get the bamboo spoon at the same time, the chashaku.

And I had bowls that I was using, but then I found a nice black chawan for £6.75 from a Tea/coffee shop in Norwich, was super happy considering all the nice ones I’d seen online cost more than I was willing to pay. I’m sure that’ll change if I find a really pretty one though. Seen a few on some sites now… but I will hold off as I have my nice Cha Cult one now.

Very pleased when I found out it was only £6.75.

So my next problem was, what would I do when my current batch runs out? Do I get the same kind of matcha? Or do I try a different kind? A better/more expensive kind? So I did. I went for Matcha Factory‘s First Blossom. (And a whisk stand, cos why not XD)

I so want to try this now, but I should wait until my Grape Tree stuff is finished…. I might break down though… this is supposed to be the slightly sweeter matcha, because of the super fresh top leaves that are harvested during the first season. So I’ll see… either way, the Grape Tree matcha is lovely, not bitter at all, warm and earthy with a hint of sweetness. Like a super concentrated green tea, like I expected. And it’s meant to be good for bowls and whatnot, so it might benefit me more than I know due to my Crohn’s and all.

I’m still not sure if I’m getting the amounts right, but it seems to froth up *ok*(could be frothier) and the colour looks good to me. A nice bright green, instead of the muddy yellows you see with most green tea bags, and low quality matcha or so I’ve seen.

If I try the Matcha Factory kind and find out I can’t taste much of a difference, it either means my tastebuds are dead, OR I can keep buying Grape Tree’s without any problem or thoughts that I could get tastier matcha. I should keep trying from other places though… over time… No point buying loads all at once.

Tags: ceremonial, first blossom, grape tree, great taste, green tea, healthy, japan, japanese, liu, liu cha, matcha, matcha factory, powder, tea